Honey Garlic Chicken is seasoned and coated boneless, skinless chicken breasts that are pan-fried and covered in a honey garlic sauce. Try my Slow Cooker Honey Garlic Chicken for another variation of this delicious recipe.
Honey Garlic Chicken
This recipe is one of my new favorite and flavorful ways to serve chicken breasts. It is easy enough for a weeknight meal that the entire family will love. The seasoned chicken breasts are sweetened by the honey garlic sauce and is a well-balanced meal when served over a bed of rice and a side of steamed broccoli.
Chicken Ingredients
Chicken: I used three boneless, skinless chicken breasts for this recipe. Cooking time will vary depending on the size of chicken breasts you use. You could also use chicken thighs if you prefer.
Seasonings: To season the chicken, use a combination of paprika, chili powder, garlic powder, parsley, salt, and pepper.
Sauce: The honey garlic sauce is made with minced garlic, honey, soy sauce, and apple cider vinegar.
Preparing the Chicken
To get the chicken ready to be cooked, first, pound out the chicken to the same thickness. This will help the chicken to be cooked evenly. Next, pat the chicken dry with a paper towel and use a sharp knife to make 4 to 5 cross-hatch cuts in the chicken. Scoring the chicken will allow the seasonings to get into the cuts, bringing out the most flavor. Make 4-5 slits into the chicken breasts, about 1/8-inch deep and 1/2-inch apart. Then, make the cross-hatch cuts.
After the chicken breasts have been scored, drizzle olive oil over both sides. Mix together the paprika, chili powder, garlic powder, parsley, salt, and pepper, and season the chicken breasts. Again, season both sides of the chicken, and be sure to get the seasonings in the grooves you just cut.
How to Make Honey Garlic Chicken
With the chicken prepared, it’s time to get the recipe made. In a large skillet over medium heat, melt 6 tablespoons of butter. Once the butter has melted, dredge the seasoned chicken in flour and add it to the skillet, cross-hatch side up. Cook on one side for 5 minutes. Then, flip it over and cook the other side of the chicken for 5 minutes. The chicken will probably not be completely cooked through at this point, but that’s okay; it will continue to cook when added to the sauce.
Remove the chicken from the skillet and place it on a plate. Tent with some aluminum foil to keep it warm as you make the sauce. To make the sauce, add the remaining butter and minced garlic to the skillet (still over medium heat). Cook for a minute. Then, whisk in the honey, soy sauce, and apple cider vinegar. Finally, add the chicken back into the skillet, cross-hatch side up. Cook the chicken with the sauce for 3-5 minutes, or until the sauce has thickened and the internal temperature of each chicken breast reaches 165°F. Serve the chicken with cooked rice and steamed broccoli.
How to Thicken or Thin Out the Sauce
If you are not happy with the consistency of the sauce, it’s easy to make it thicker or thinner. To thicken the sauce, simply mix together a tablespoon of cornstarch with two tablespoons of cold water to make a slurry. Add the slurry to the sauce to thicken it up. On the other hand, if you think the sauce is too thick, add a little bit of water at a time until the sauce reaches your desired consistency.
More Chicken Recipes
Honey Garlic Chicken
Ingredients
- 3 boneless skinless chicken breasts (approximately 1½ pounds), pounded to ½-inch thickness
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon fresh parsley, plus more for garnish
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- ⅓ cup honey
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
Instructions
- Pat chicken dry with a paper towel and use a sharp knife to make 4-5 cross-hatch cuts, making sure to not cut all the way through the chicken.
- Drizzle olive oil over both sides of each chicken breast.
- In a small bowl, combine paprika, chili powder, garlic powder, parsley, salt, and pepper.
- Season the chicken all over with the seasoning mixture, including rubbing it into the grooves.
- In a wide, deep plate, add the flour. Dredge each chicken breast in the flour, coating all sides. Shake off excess flour.
- In a large skillet over medium heat, melt 6 tablespoons of butter. Add chicken, cross-hatch side up, and cook for 5 minutes. Flip and repeat on the opposite side. Chicken may not be cooked through yet; it will continue cooking in the final step.
- Remove chicken from pan, and tent it to keep warm.
- To the skillet, add the remaining butter and garlic, and cook for one minute.
- Add honey, soy sauce, and apple cider vinegar to the skillet and whisk to combine.
- Add the chicken back to the pan, cross-hatch side up. Allow the mixture to simmer until the sauce is thickened and chicken is cooked through, or about 3-5 minutes. (Chicken is fully cooked when it reaches an internal temperature of 165°F.) Occasionally baste the chicken with the sauce.
- Serve, garnished with fresh parsley, with cooked rice and steamed broccoli.
Did you make this recipe?
You can tag me at @iamhomesteader.
This recipe was inspired by The Shaba Kitchen on TikTok.
Followed the recipe exactly. For some reason the flour layer just got soggy. There was SO MUCH BUTTER it was cooking in. I don’t know how other people didn’t end up with soggy crust too. My sauce also thickens up so fast I had to add at least 1/4c of water by the time the chicken was fully cooked. I did everything on medium just like the directions called for. Family and I were disappointed in this one. Guess I’m not sure how mine turned out so different than other reviews. And I’m not a new cook. In fact I have a baking and pastry degree. Just odd.
Oh dear! So sorry that was your experience. It sounds like your heat may have been a bit higher than suggested which is why the sauce thickened so quickly and why you adjusted and added more water. Which would also account for sogginess. I can see why you would be disappointed when your results were so different than others. Hope you are able to try again and experience why this dish is so amazing!
I actually have all the ingredients! Will it make a difference if I use salted butter?
Should be fine! Just taste test before adding any more salt. 🙂
Delicious! Thanks for the recipe!
I made this after seeing it on Tic Tok, it might have been the best chicken I’ve ever eaten. It was so moist, tender, and flavorful. I will try your recipe too.
This was a great recipe. It was so good! The chicken came out so tender. I paired it with sautéed red cabbage, sautéed zucchini, and a side of rice.
Absolutely delicious. Chicken was moist and tender and ever so flavorful. My husband rated it a 10 and said it was a definite make again!
Any chance this could be baked in the oven ?
Sorry I just found recipe
Wheres the recipe,.6tbs butter in pan,then after removing ch.add remaining butter to pan,huh? What remaining butter is that?sorry but im off to check out another cooks site
It say 8 Tbs of Butter, DIVIDED. You use part of it for the first part and the rest for the second part. Simple.
It was very good family loved it
Made this and loved it!! I did double the recipe and had extra, I will make this again loved it !!Soooo good!! I was very excited how it turned out!! Thank you for a great recipe!!
This was amazing!!! I followed the directions precisely and it was perfect!!! Kudos!!
Tried this recipe today. It was super easy and very tasty! I think next time I will try adding sesame seeds and a little sesame oil just to change it up.
Oh WOW! So good!
Delicious! it is a family favourite and I prepare it in a regular basis. Thank you.
Excellent! Will add just a dash of cayenne next time. I like a bit of a kick.
Really tasty and simple enough to make. Thank you for a great recipe.
dear Amanda,
your recipe is so mouthwatering, I would like to eat it at this moment. Thanks for sharing. I will keep this recipe in mind. We love chicken.
I send you Greetings from Cologne/Germany, Katharina
Yum, yum, yum! Followed the directions to a T and had one happy family during supper! Only thing I will do differently next time is to make a double-batch so there’s seconds and leftovers! 😉 This one is going into the meal rotation!
So glad you liked it!!